Estée and Bert’s South African wedding at Karoo One had serious contemporary outdoor festival vibes, and we can’t stop staring! With the help of the farm’s owners — who converted nearly every space to be fit for a wedding — and their tribe of loved ones, the couple created a magical weekend that was inspired by the groom’s farm roots and infused with the bride’s big city style. With just a few simple details, such as floral hoops, string lights, wine barrels, and mismatched seating areas, they transformed the natural landscape into a stylish lounge that was perfect for dancing until the early morning hours. Grace Charlotte Photography outdid herself capturing every special moment and unique angle of this wedding, but she went above and beyond with the couple’s epic cliffside and desert portraits!

The Couple:

Estée and Bert

The Wedding:

Karoo One, Western Cape, South Africa

The most important thing was that we wanted our wedding to represent the both of us — modern farm boy meets city chic girl. Because I was marrying a Karoo (semi-desert) farmer, I wanted a venue that looked like my future home. Finding this gem, Karoo One, was perfect. We planned the wedding to make the most of this absolutely astonishing landscape.

Originally, we wanted to get married on my husband’s farm, Knoffelfontein (“Garlic Fountain”), in the Karoo. Bert grew up on the farm and it’s where we’ll be starting our life together. Unfortunately, it posed a few too many challenges. One day I came across Karoo One and it reminded me so much of the farm that I thought it was perfect! I immediately sent my mom and hubby-to-be the photos. When we finally visited, my mom realized she had been there a few years before and had told her husband that one of her daughters would get married there someday!

We wanted our wedding to be an informal, weekend festival with family and friends. Given the spectacular scenery, we used nature as the event decorator. We wanted everything to be outside. The venue has a chapel and reception area, but we had other plans. The owners were so intrigued, they actually agreed to convert the river bed into a lounge-style reception and dance area, the sheep grazing fields into a kitchen, the vineyard into a glamping site, the winery into the groom’s dressing area, and the gorge dam area into a ceremony area.

The pre-wedding crew of friends and family arrived a couple of days before the wedding. We spent these few days sharing lots of laughter and tequila while crafting all the wedding details. We made a copper frame with a canvas wedding logo, directional signs, rose gold hula hoops, and our 1.5-meter long wedding cake!

Because most of the wedding guests were accommodated on the Karoo One Guest Farm, we started the weekend festival with a traditional South-African spitbraai (whole lamb on rotisserie).

Saturday morning we had an early morning yoga session, overlooking the rocky mountain range, and later that morning we did a wine tasting on the farm. By 3:30 all the guests started the few hundred meter stroll through the valley to the gorge ceremony area. Following the ceremony, the guests strolled a further few hundred meters to the cleared out river bed area, where we all celebrated till the early morning hours.

As a gift for Bert, I had 40 polaroids from our engagement shoot printed. On each one, I wrote a reason why I love him, and we hung them in our gift shack.

I had an outfit change before our first dance that only my mom and aunt knew about. Bert and all the guests were so surprised!

Processional – “I Get to Love You” by Ruelle
Reception Entrance – “Better Man” by Paolo Nutini (cover performed by Deon Volschenk)
First Dance – “Ek Sweer” by Twee

Congratulations to Estée and Bert, and a big thanks to Grace Charlotte Photography for sharing this incredible Karoo One wedding with us! If you’re crushing on the desert vibe in this wedding, you’re gonna wanna copy the rich color palette in this desert elopement inspiration at Sycamore Canyon Trails!